Manchester City Manager, Pep Guardiola has downplayed the extent of his side’s experience in the run-in of the Premier League title. And instead, said Arsenal have a major advantage over his team.
With a 3-0 victory over Fulham on Sunday, Arsenal reclaimed a five-point gap atop the standings over City, who had beaten Crystal Palace 1-0 the day before on the help of a late penalty from Erling Haaland.
Compared to their recent dramatic wins over Aston Villa and Bournemouth, which both involved stoppage-time goals, Arsenal’s victory was a bit more comfortable.
Guardiola thinks that Arsenal has an advantage over the defending champions City because of the Gunners’ long title drought, which he believes drives their desire to fight until the end.
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‘Still Arsenal are the favourites because they are up front,’ said the Spanish coach over the weekend.
‘They make an incredible first leg [of the season], they drop a little bit then come back again.
‘They have many years without winning the Premier League and they give you this extra that helps you win games in 93rd minute, 98th minute, that’s something they have which we don’t have because we won back-to-back two times.
‘That’s why when the people say what about your opinion of the team and the season, after two times back-to-back, one team gets 50 points in the first leg, still we are there.’
Arsenal are back in action on Sunday when they will host Crystal Palace at the Emirates stadium in a London derby fixture. The Cityzens on the other hand have no league fixture until after the international break when they will welcome Liverpool at the Etihad.
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